1. LEGGERE CON ATTENZIONE I TESTI. 2. TRADURRE I TESTI CON L'AIUTO DI UN DIZIONARIO BILINGUE. 3. SVOLGERE LE ATTIVITÀ PREVISTE PER OGNI SINGOLO

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2 1. LEGGERE CON ATTENZIONE I TESTI. 2. TRADURRE I TESTI CON L'AIUTO DI UN DIZIONARIO BILINGUE. 3. SVOLGERE LE ATTIVITÀ PREVISTE PER OGNI SINGOLO BRANO.

3 JAPAN S MOST FAMOUS DOG In front of the enormous Shibuya train station in Tokyo, there is a lifesize bronze statue of a dog. Even though the statue is very small when compared to the huge neon signs flashing, it isn't difficult to find. It has been used as a meeting point since 1934 and today you will find hundreds of people waiting there for their friends to arrive. Hachiko, an Akita dog, was born in 1923 and brought to Tokyo in His owner, Professor Eisaburo Uyeno and he were inseparable friends right from the start. Each day Hachiko would accompany his owner, a professor at the Imperial University, to Shibuya train station when he left for work. When he came back, the professor would always find the dog patiently waiting for him. Sadly, the professor died suddenly at work in 1925 before he could return home. Although Hachiko was still a young dog, the bond between him and his owner was very strong and he continued to wait at the station every day. Sometimes, he would stay there for days at a time, though some believe that he kept returning because of the food he was given by street vendors. He became a familiar sight to commuters over time. In 1934, a statue of him was put outside the station. In 1935, Hachiko died at the place he last saw his friend alive. A. READ THE TEXT AND ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS. 1.Hachiko s statue is small in comparison to: a. Life sized dogs. b. Huge billboard signs. c. Huge neon signs. 2.People get together at the statue of Hachiko because: a. They like to visit the bronze statue and pray for the dog s soul. b. It serves as a meeting point for lovers. c. People await there to meet with their friends. 3.Where did the professor work? a. In a primary school. b. At a university. c. At a train station. SELECT TRUE OR FALSE Hachiko waited every day at the station. True False Nobody gave Hachiko any food. True False

4 SLOW-FRIED FRENCH FRIES There are certain foods that are better when not made at home, like French fries. To achieve golden-brown perfection, you have to fry them twice: first at a low temperature, to poach them; then at a high heat, to crisp them up. Very tasty, very much a pain in the neck. A few years back, I read about how French chef Joel Robuchon supposedly does it at his house: he puts sliced potatoes in a pot of cold oil, turns on the heat, and lets them go. It sounds too simple to work. But as the temperature rises, the potatoes cook from the outer layer in until the fries are wonderfully crunchy outside and creamy in the center. You'll never make fries any other way-even if you've never made them before. Put a in the right box: 1. The word chef (in line 6) means a person in charge of a hotel a person who cooks a person who waits on people 3. The word twice (in line 3) means: one time two times three times 5. French fries are better when cooked at home in a restaurant in a factory 2. In the text fry (line 3) means: to cook in a pan over heat with use of fat to cut something into pieces to slice something 4. In the text poach (line 4) means: to cook in salty liquid to cook in a boiling liquid to fry 6. The French chef J.R. has his own recipe doesn t know how to make French fries doesn t cook French fries at all 7. What does the word crisp mean: soft crunchy 8. What does a pain in the neck mean? to have a problem with one s neck to please someone flexible Ghht to be annoying

5 THE LOCH NESS MONSTER I have lived here beside the Loch Ness since I retired last year. My house has a good, clear view of the loch. In fact, it s only about a hundred metres from the lake, and there is nothing but the road in between. Now I ve never been interested in the Loch Ness monster, you understand. Until last Tuesday, I thought it was just a good story to attract tourists. But I ve had to change my mind after last Tuesday s experience. I got up as usual at about 7 and went into my garden. Something attracted my attention to the loch. There was almost no mist that morning, and I could see there was something moving quite fast, going north, in the middle of the loch. It looked like a giant snake, with its head and part of its body above water. It was about thirty metres long. I rushed into the house to get my camera, but when I was back the monster had gone. I waited and it appeared again, this time nearer the road and my house. I could see it clearly. I managed to take several photographs of it. They haven t come out very well, unfortunately, but one or two of them show the creature quite clearly. At one point it swam straight towards me, but then a lorry passed on the road and perhaps it heard the noise of the engine because it disappeared again. I reckon the whole incident lasted for about fifteen minutes, because I looked at my watch the last time I saw it, and it said a quarter past seven. I ve never seen anything so strange in my life. A. ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS. 1.- When did he retire? 2.- What can been seen from his house? 3.- What is there between his house and the lake? 4.- What time does he usually get up? 5.- Why did he have a clear view of the lake that morning? 6.- What happened when he ran into the house to get his camera? 7.- Did he take any photographs? 8.- What made the monster disappear the second time?

6 THE HISTORY OF CHOCOLATE One of the most popular foods of all time is chocolate. People nowadays eat chocolate in many different forms. We eat chocolate candy, and we drink hot and cold chocolate drinks. The chocolate we eat today is made from a lot of different ingredients, but the most important ingredient is cacao bean. The story of cacao bean and its long journey to stores and supermarkets all over the world started hundreds of years ago in Mexico. Cacao trees need hot and humid weather, and they originally grew in the Yucatan Peninsula. The Maya were the first people to eat cacao beans. They picked cacao beans from wild trees and cleared land to cultivate their own trees. They made a drink from cacao beans and exchanged the beans for other goods. They also used cacao beans for religious ceremonies. Mayan merchants traveled north and introduced cacao beans to the Aztec people. Soon the cacao bean was part of the Aztecs lives. They used it as a drink, as part of religious ceremonies and even as money. With 10 beans, you could buy a rabbit. With 100 beans, you could buy a slave. One of the Aztec god. The Aztecs could not grow cacao trees because of the dry climate. When the Aztecs conquered the Maya, they asked for cacao beans as a tribute. A. READ AND CIRCLE THE MISTAKES IN THE SENTENCES. 1. The chocolate isn t popular nowadays. 2. The cacao trees grow in Europe. 3. The Maya made bread from cacao beans. B. READ THE STORY AND ANSWER THE QUESTIONS. 1. Where does chocolate come from? 2. What is the most important ingredient in chocolate? 3. Where did cacao beans originally grow? 4. Who were the first people to eat cacao beans? 5. Who introduced the cacao beans to the Aztecs? 6. What did the Aztecs use the cacao beans for? 7. What did the Maya give the Aztecs as a tribute?

7 PHOBIAS DIZIONARIO DI ALCUNI TERMINI TECNICI Ailurofobia (gatti) anglofobia (inglese) bibliofobia (libri) caetofobia (capelli) cionofobia o quionofobia (neve) ecofobia (casa) logofobia (parole) nomatofobia (nomi) dendrofobia (alberi) eliofobia (sole) laliofobia (parlare) cinofobia (cani)

8 MARTIN S HOLIDAYS A. PUT THE VERBS IN BRACKETS INTO THE PAST SIMPLE. Martin (to have) a terrible day yesterday. It (to be) the day of his holiday to Spain but it (to be) a nightmare. He (to leave) the house at 10 o'clock in the morning and (to catch) a taxi to the airport. Martin (to go) to the check-in with his luggage. When the man who (to work) for the airline (to ask) for his passport, Martin (to become) very upset. Where was his passport? Martin (to realize) he didn't have his passport with him. What a disaster! He (to jump) back into the taxi and (to tell) the driver to take him home. The driver (to drive) quickly and Martin (to arrive) back at his house in twenty minutes. He (to run) into the house and (to go) into his bedroom. He (to find) his passport on the bedside table and (to leave) the house again. But the taxi wasn't there! Where was the taxi? Martin (to jump) up and down angrily. "I don't believe it. The taxi (to leave)!" he (to shout). He (to run) down the street and (to look) for another taxi. After a few minutes, Martin (to find) another taxi and (to tell) the driver to take him to the airport as quickly as possible. The traffic on the roads (to be) very bad and, unfortunately, Martin's taxi (to arrive) at the airport late. His plane (to leave) for Spain at and Martin (to miss) it. He (to be) very sad and (to go) to speak to the airline. They (to promise) to get him a seat on an evening flight and Martin (to go) home on another taxi to wait. B. ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS. 1. What time did Martin leave the house? 2. How did he get to the airport? 3. When did he realize that he didn't have his passport? 4. How long did it take to go back to his house in the taxi? 5. Where was the passport? 6. What did Martin discover when he went back outside? 7. How did Martin get to the airport the second time? 8. Why did he arrive late at the airport? 9. Why did Martin go home?

9 FUTURE PLANS My name is Lance and I am 15 years old. I am not sure what job I want when I am older, but I do know that I want to go to university. I am going to study English, Italian and Maths in Year 12 & 13 and then go to a good university to study modern languages. Maybe I will become a famous writer or artist. Hi, my name is Rosie. I am 17 years old. I am going to be a doctor when I am older. I love to study and will go to medical school when I am 20. Before this I am going to travel abroad, to Africa and India and work in hospitals to get some experience. I know it will be difficult, but I will be strong and won t get frightened or scared even if things get hard. I want to be the best! When I am older I am going to travel more. I came to the UK from Italy when I was five and I will return there one day soon. As I am going to travel I will learn as many new languages as I can while I am at school. I really want to learn Chinese and Russian, but the school doesn t teach it at the minute, although the teachers say this will change soon! Sorry I forgot to say, my name is Laurent and I hope I will meet you on my travels in the future! ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS. 1. Who is going to be a doctor? 2. Which 2 students will learn new languages in the future? 3. Will Laurent be able to learn Russian at school? 4. Does Lance think he will become a dancer when he is older? 5. How many students want to travel in the future?